In 1997, Tussauds employees met Trump in his office in New York and took hundreds of measurements and photographs for a wax figure they were working on at the time.

"We did a lot of research about how he styles his hair. It's hairspray and almost like a lacquer," David Gardner, the chief sculptor of the most recent Trump, told CNN last year. Gardner also met Trump in 1997 for the original figure.

Last month, when the real Trump canceled his trip to visit the new US embassy in London, Tussauds sent the fake one instead.

Nearby construction workers and other onlookers excitedly took photos with the figure.

"We were only at the embassy for about 25 minutes, but there were some immediate reactions," a Madame Tussauds spokesperson told The Washington Post in January. "Workers came out to take selfies, and I guess some people checked twice whether this is really just a waxwork."